Magazine articles
Period coverage of the S/R's 1999 launch and the SVT Escort that never was. Click any page to read it full size.
These scans were collected by ZX2 owners in the mid-2000s. The articles are © their publishers and are reproduced for reference. If you hold the rights to one and want it removed, email admin@zx2ms.com and we’ll take it down. Better scans, or articles we don’t have, are welcome on the forum.
None of these S/R stories has instrumented test figures. The press drive was at Buttonwillow Raceway right after the March 1999 Import Auto Salon, and the magazines report top speeds and lap times there instead. The measured tests are on Road tests.
AutoWeek, May 3, 1999
“The Once and Future Hot Rod,” by Mark Vaughn, pages 20–21. The fullest account of who built the S/R and why, with quotes from Al Kammerer and Terry Crossett. AutoWeek says the first 100 cars would be built on the Hermosillo line from supplier kits and sold in Southern California.
Automobile Magazine, 1999
“Escort Service,” by Michael Jordan, a news item on page 21. The issue date isn’t printed; it’s probably mid-1999. Automobile gives 143 bhp, a $1,495 package price (“about $14,835”) and says only 100 were scheduled, “although Ford says it will make more if anyone asks.”
Sport Compact Car, July 1999
“Ford ZX2 S/R: Detroit Wants In On The Fun,” a driving impression by Josh Jacquot, starting on page 42. Page 5 of the scan is cropped. The story says the stock ZX2 has a 104 mph limiter because of its tires, which the S/R calibration removes. On track the S/R was about 2 seconds a lap quicker and reached about 125 mph where the stock car hit its limiter. Bought separately, the parts would cost “almost $4,000”.
Super Street, July 1999
“ZX2 S/R: Flying Elbow! Body Slam!” by Brent Romans, starting on page 102. A sidebar profiles engineers Glenn Miller (chassis) and Mike Gearhart (powertrain) and says the car went from approval to the assembly line in 7 months. Super Street says the first 100 cars would all be Zinc Yellow, and saw 120 mph on Buttonwillow’s back straight against 105 for a stock ZX2. Its spec box gives an estimated price of $17,700.
Turbo & High-Tech Performance, August 1999
“First Drive: Ford Escort ZX2 S/R,” a staff report starting on page 136. It has the best color photos of the launch drive, including the S/R on track at Buttonwillow and the Roush intake. It calls the S/R “an option on the ZX2 order sheet” and says Ford had “yet to determine where to draw the line” on production.
Road & Track, probably September 1999
A single page, numbered 97, with the end of an S/R test and a section on the ZX2 Fusion. It gives the only instrumented S/R figures in this set: 7.7 seconds to 60, a 16.0-second quarter mile at 86.5 mph and 0.87 g on the skidpad.
The SVT Escort, 1998
Two spy items from early 1998 share one Jim Dunne photo of a red ZX2 prototype with a larger rear fascia, rocker extensions and 16-inch alloys. Sport Compact Car said SVT’s go/no-go decision depended on ZX2 sales and listed four-wheel discs, a higher-output engine and a five-speed manual. Popular Mechanics captioned it “Ford Escort SVT”. It was never built. See Racing and show cars.
